The present disclosure relates to absorbent articles, such as diapers, training pants, incontinence garments, and feminine hygiene products, which comprise one or more sensors capable of detecting the presence of a body waste, such as urine, feces, or menses, in the absorbent article. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to absorbent articles comprising at least one chemiresistor capable of detecting the presence of volatile organic compounds associated with body wastes. When the presence of a body waste is detected, an indicator means signals a caregiver and/or a wearer of the absorbent article that the absorbent article needs to be changed.
Disposable absorbent articles such as diapers, incontinence garments, and feminine hygiene products are widely used. Such articles are worn to catch and hold body waste, such as urine, feces, and menstrual fluid, for extended periods of time. However, body waste may be a skin irritant, in addition to being a major source of various types of bacteria. Consequently, when body waste is held in contact with skin for extended periods of time, the skin can become inflamed and irritated, and may develop, for example, skin rash (e.g., diaper rash, irritant rash, etc.) or other related conditions that may be caused by prolonged exposure to moisture, heat, irritants, enzymes, bacteria, the products of bacterial action, and/or pressure.
In addition to causing skin conditions such as skin rash, bacteria present in the waste can produce significant amounts of volatile organic compounds. Because human waste contains such a large number of bacteria which can lay next to the skin after release, these volatile organic compounds may also be a major source of irritants to the skin, and may be involved in skin irritation in the diapered and vaginal environments.
Furthermore, volatile organic compounds may be a significant source of objectionable odors. For example, some bacteria produce ammonia, mercaptans, or other odorous compounds through degradation of urine. Urine, for example, may also be used as a nutritional substrate by bacteria, resulting in growth of more bacteria and production of more ammonia in an increasing detrimental cycle.
As such, it would be beneficial for caregivers and/or wearers of absorbent articles to know when an absorbent article had been insulted with a body waste so the caregiver and/or wearer could change the absorbent article, thus reducing or eliminating the occurrence of unpleasant odor and skin irritation associated with wearing an absorbent article for an extended period of time. Thus, a need exists in the infant care, adult care, wound management, and feminine care products industries for a method of quickly and accurately identifying the presence of a body waste in an absorbent article.